Meeting a Soldier Part One
by Airon Pegasus
Summary: When Twilight and there friends visit Canterlot to complete a task given to them by the princess, they are surprised to find that one of the royal guards isn't who he seems to be. The secrets under his armor can only be unlocked by the magic of friendship!
1. Chapter 1

/1\

Fluttershy the pegasus was too busy to go anywhere. Winter wrap-up had only finished a couple of weeks ago and all of her bird friends had eggs to care for, so she was worrying about the mother birds' comfort. She rushed around on her wings bringing them bird feed and tiny pillows, asking if they were all right or if they needed anything. So when her Unicorn friend Twilight Sparkle came up to her cottage, she didn't even notice.

Twilight knocked a couple of times before deciding to just go in. She had never seen Fluttershy so busy! It took Twilight a while to get Fluttershy's attention. She tried speaking, even shouting (which usually works on the timid little pegasus). She ended up having to use magic to teleport right in front of Fluttershy. She was nearly trampled by the bustling animal lover.

"Fluttershy!" Shouted Twilight when she appeared in front of Fluttershy.

"Oh, hello Twilight," whispered Fluttershy, as if Twilight hadn't been there for most of the morning. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Well actually-"

"Okay good," Fluttershy cut her friend off, thinking she was only there to visit, "I've really got to get back to caring for these mother birds." At that she rushed out the front door with a large sack of various seeds.

She sprinted through the air between nests feeding just the right amount of seeds to sparrows, robins, hummingbirds, and every other kind of bird in their home, Ponyville.

Twilight resorted to grabbing her friend in mid-flight with magic. She floated Fluttershy to her face and looked right in her eyes.

"Actually Fluttershy," Twilight began, "I got letter from Princess Celestia, asking us to head up to Canterlot to inspect the Royal Pegasus Guard."

"Well that's a very generous invitation," Fluttershy replied quietly, "but you see, I have all these birds that have just laid their eggs, and I need to make sure they are comfortable."

"But don't the father birds take good enough care of them?" Twilight asked, putting her friend gently back on the ground.

"Oh I can't really trust those men," Fluttershy stated, confusing Twilight, "have you noticed; they aren't even here right now? When the mother birds need them?"

"They're probably just looking for food," Twilight suggested, "It's still pretty early after winter, the worms are probably-"

"NO!" Fluttershy exclaimed, barely raising her voice. "They left too early in the morning for men to. They abandoned us!"

Twilight closed her eyes and grinned. "Well you know what they say! The early bird catches the worm!" When she opened her eyes, Fluttershy was back to rushing back and forth to help the birds with their eggs. Twilight rolled her eyes and walked back down to Ponyville, where her other friends were waiting.

"She's too busy right now," she told everypony who was there, "but we can probably make it by all right without her."

Rainbow Dash, another pegasus friend of Twilight's, dropped in front of her. "You bet we can! I'll give those guards a flying test they won't soon forget!" She flew around as she spoke, showing off her aerobatics skills with flips and mid-air punches.

"Yeah Twilight," said Applejack, a pony who had worked all her life on an apple farm, "You can count on Rainbow Dash an' I to test out their physical ability!"

"YEAH!" Blurted the enthusiastic pony Pinkie Pie. "And me and Rarity are gonna make sure they're too good for distractions!" Pinkie Pie was an intense party pony, to put it plainly. She was always coming up with Ideas to make her friends smile. Nopony she knew was able to ignore her.  
While Rarity, a fashionable unicorn, relied mainly on her style and ability to woo men to get their attention. Although, as pretty and prissy as she may be, she was still able to hold her ground in a fight if need be.

Twilight was surprised at how well all of her friends had organized themselves into groups for the evaluations. Usually she was left assigning their positions to them. While that made her proud of her friends, she also felt a bit left out. Most of what they had said was part of her plan anyway, but she had expected to go with Fluttershy to each of the guards just to speak with them, get to know them, and, according to Princess Celestia's wishes, make sure they were still happy and not just brainwashed with their duty to protect the city.

Twilight smiled at her friends and they all headed to the train station for their ride to Canterlot.

/2\

Nopony talked much on the train, except of course for Pinkie Pie, who is always talking about anything she can think of at the speed of sound. Everypony else was silent though, thinking about their duties and how they would trick each pegasus guard individually into just barely passing their tests. Even Twilight was thinking about if she would be good enough on her own to test the guards' sociability and just plain happiness in their normal lives. She tried not to think about it too much, it would distract her from her job.

At the train station, the captain of the royal flight guard met them there. He was easy to point out from a regular guard due to his orange and purple armor, apart from the plain golden and white armor of the rest of the pegasi. He approached them. Twilight was the first to speak to him.

"It's nice to meet you sir," she always started simple; "we're very excited to help evaluate the pegasus guard."

"Yes indeed," he chided, waving away her enthusiasm, "it's a royal honor, blah blah blah. Let's get on with it." He led them to a courtyard where close to 50 pegasi were lined up waiting for evaluation. "You're free to start. They leave their armor on and do not leave the courtyard."

At that, Rainbow Dash sprinted through the air toward the first pegasus in the line-up, he flinched slightly when she appeared in front of him but didn't move his hooves from that position.

"Sooooo, you think you're pretty tough, huh?" She looked directly into each of his eyes individually, as if inspecting them for flaws. He began to sweat nervously.

"I guess so-"

"IT WAS RHETORICAL! NOW ALL OF YOU, TWENTY LAPS AROUND THE GARDEN, PRONTO!" she shouted, gesturing to the rest of the pegasi in the front line.

Some groaned but didn't question, they were good at following orders. This aroused Twilight's suspicion a bit. She had expected to have to introduce herself and begin the evaluation more calmly, but apparently the group already knew they were coming. As her friends got to work, she started, too. Her first target, the captain of the guard.

"Sooooo, I guess these pegasi are pretty fit," Twilight said as she slid up next to the captain.

"Absolutely, as soon as the princess informed us that you and your friends would be doing the evaluation, we began preparations," this confirmed Twilight's suspicion. They had known she was coming. That's good.

"So you were told by the princess that we were coming? Then you must know her instructions, about the evaluation?"

"She told us you would be testing their ability. I assume she meant endurance and strength, as well as their attention."

"Well yes, but in the orders she gave me, she asked that I 'mingle' with them, get to know them?" He gave her an awkward look. "I mean, she wants me to make sure they still have social lives, instead of just being cruel army buffs."

"What's wrong with army buffs?!" Asked the captain sternly.

"Princess Celestia believes it isn't healthy for them, psychologically." She poked her head with her hoof, indicating that it had to do with their minds.

He paused for a moment, contemplating her proposal. "Very well," he spoke at last, "I suppose you'll start with me then."

"If that's OK, I'm sure I'll get back to you eventually, but since we're already here..."

"Yes, get on with it."

She hesitated, a bit intimidated. "Well, how are you doing today?"

"A bit stressed honestly," he sighed. Twilight was surprised by the friendliness in his voice now.

"That's OK. I'm sure all your soldiers will pass, sir. There is no doubt in-"

"Airon!" He interrupted. Twilight wasn't confused for too long.

"Oh, is that your name. You want me to call you that instead of 'sir' or 'captain?'"

"No, it's one of my soldiers. Private Airon Pegasus. He showed up late today. I'm afraid he's upset by something."

That worried Twilight. She thought this "upset" pegasus might be too distracted by whatever is upsetting him to do well. What would she do if someone actually failed the test?

"I'm sure he's ok, but he definitely needs some talking to." There was clearly something more caring in his voice for this pegasus. Then Twilight thought of something.

"You said his NAME is Pegasus?"

"Yes, Private Airon Pegasus. Last known, direct descendant of the legendary Emperor Pegasus. He doesn't seem too excited about the fact, so try not to bring it up."

"I'll see what I can do. Just one thing. I can't tell these soldiers apart, no offense, but I wouldn't be able to keep track of him if you pointed him out." She expected it to be an excuse to leave the plan on hold until she met this Airon boy when the time came. It didn't work out that way.

"Oh I see what you need," he stood more firmly, puckered his lips in just the right position and let out an ear splitting whistle that nearly made Twilight's own ears bleed. Then in his powerful Captain's voice, "PRIVATE PEGASUS! FRONT AND CENTER!"

All the guards stopped at the sound of the whistle, and as immediately as he shouted it, a particular pegasus came galloping over from Applejack's board-bucking test and straight to the captain and Twilight. As he got closer, Twilight noticed a distinct gold stripe hidden in the hair of his tail.

"Oh and one more thing," the captain whispered as Airon drew closer, "He doesn't have his cutie mark." This worried Twilight even more. Now, not only did she take him away from his assessment, but she also had to speak gingerly with him around two incredible details about this one particular pegasus. This was going to be dreadful.

"Private Pegasus reporting for duty, sir!" Airon stood squarely in a position directly in front of the captain. The captain waited as Twilight carefully examined the structure of the pegasus. He was about average in terms of muscle, nothing different about his wing size that she didn't consider normal, his armor fit him well and he didn't seem restricted by it, and he didn't look any older than she was. She couldn't see anything wrong with him, but she could sense the turmoil brewing in his mind. She suddenly became determined to find out what was wrong, and help fix it.

A long minute went past before the captain spoke up again. "Private, you will be the first of your group to undergo the, 'mental examination,' by this young lady here." Airon didn't seem too thrilled about the plan, but he didn't say anything. Twilight could tell he really didn't like the idea. Either because of the fact that he was being taken away from his test, or that he was the first one who would be spending time personally with this stranger mare. The silence didn't last too long this time, "Is there a problem with that soldier?" The captain forced.

"No sir, no problem at all!" Airon forced it out, like he hadn't had enough time to practice it.

"Very good. Remember, this is part of the evaluation, do your best!" At that, the captain began a slow canter away from Airon and Twilight. Airon dropped his head slightly once the captain turned his back completely. Staring at the ground, he said nothing.

Twilight decided to break the barrier, "So," she began quietly, "how are you?"

His head shot up quickly. "With all due respect, ma'am, I understand that you are here to test the mental stability of the rest of the guards and me. I can assure you that everything about me is without flaw and would appreciate it if you would get to the point, skipping past the cutesy kid-talk, please." Everything he said came so plainly one word after another, like he had been rehearsing it, the whole time with his big, intimidating, blue eyes locked on hers.

Twilight tried not to show how nervous she was. "Well, that kind of is the point. There is no written test or anything like that, just straight talk. You can be yourself around me, open up, and free your mind. You can tell me anything."

He sighed and dropped his head. "I'm not even sure how to be 'myself.' I'm sure the captain told you about my heredity, and as well as no-pony else understands, I can't understand how to be like a normal guy." His eyes were closed, and there was a touch of genuine sadness in his tone. But nothing that would have been noticeable to anypony who wasn't standing right next to him, listening intently. "I've tried to be just like everypony else, joining the guard, but they still all try so hard to give me credit just because I'm descendant to the first winged stallion of all Equestria! They just don't understand."

It was easy enough for Twilight to tell that he was at least trying to be sincere, but the years he might have spent as a soldier has really taken the passion out of his voice. Twilight went back to something the captain told her, "The captain told me that you might be having trouble with something, and that it's bothering you to the point where you showed up late this morning. Mind telling me what that's about?" As she spoke, she started trotting past him, still looking at him, making sure he was following. He trotted up next to her and they walked together around the garden as he explained.

"For some time, I've been having dreams. Not the greatest. In them, Nightmare Moon is yelling at me, telling me of my duty to protect Equestria, reminding me of my heritage as a Pegasus 'Lord.' I just feel like there's nothing else I need to do now, I'm part of the royal guard, have been for years, doing my duty to the princess. But every time I have the dream, which is more and more frequently now, She shows me something  
more, but it's always too hard to comprehend." Twilight listened closely as he poured his emotion into this conversation, which wasn't a lot. Seriously, all these years as a soldier have really taken a toll on his emotions. "Once, I saw the image of a small town. It was dark and gloomy, entirely empty, but it seemed like a good, peaceful place to live. I remember the buildings were faded, like it was only a distant memory of the place, and as I stood in the street of that town, it began to darken. Everything that was there was being consumed by evil. There was nothing I could do."

Twilight didn't know what to say, she automatically assumed that he was talking about the town she lived in, Ponyville. She didn't say anything, Airon kept speaking strongly.

"This morning, I woke up to the worst nightmare I've ever had. I was standing near a dangerous cliff, all my armor in pieces around me. There was a strong gust coming off the water from below the cliff. Suddenly, a massive silhouette rises from the water, flailing tentacles all around me. Then I woke up, sweating. I don't know what to think of them."

Twilight had an idea, but she set it aside. She thought of it as just an old mare's tale, non-existing, fiction. That wasn't like her at all.

"But it doesn't matter. I can go on without worrying myself about something that doesn't make any sense. Although I should thank you, for letting me finally tell someone about it," he turned to face her directly. His blue eyes now sparkled peacefully.

Twilight smiled, "Of course, that's why I'm here. Now if that's all you want to tell me, then you can go. Be sure to send another guard when you get over there," he bowed his head once and started flying away. "Don't work too hard!" She shouted after him, trying to leave their conversation on a good note, but that wouldn't get her worried feeling out just yet. She would just have to ignore it until she got the chance to talk to Princess Celestia.

/3\

At the end of the day, all of the pegasus guards were panting in their line-up. Twilight stood with her friends, reading off the final scores of each soldier from her clipboard to the captain. All of them had passed, some easier than others, and everyone had had the chance to speak calmly about their social life with Twilight individually. The evaluation was a success!

When they were done and on their way back to the train station, Twilight told her friends that she needed to speak with the princess, and that they didn't need to wait for her. They said their brief "see-ya laters" and Twilight was off. She found her way to the throne room to find the princess sitting in her throne.

"Twilight, how nice to see you," she greeted her beloved student, "how did the evaluation go?"

"It went rather well. In fact, that's sort of what I need to talk to you about, now." She started from when she began her conversation with the captain, and described very well her encounter with the peculiar pegasus Airon. Princess Celestia listened closely to every detail and calculated in her mind what would be the best thing to do.

"Very well," the princess spoke softly once Twilight finished, "I know what must be done. You shall see how it turns out in due time. For now, you must go catch your train."

"Thank you princess," Twilight bowed before she galloped out. The large double doors were closed by the unicorn guards and the princess stood. She walked up to the door and whispered to one of the guards. He nodded and walked out quickly.

It was some time before the guard came back, leading Airon Pegasus behind him.

The princess was back at her throne, waiting for him. "Private Airon Pegasus, I have an important assignment for you. I have decided upon the plan that you shall travel to the town called Ponyville at the base of this mountain. You will be in charge of evaluating the structure of the town and decide whether it would be safe in the case of an emergency."

Airon panicked. He could tell that this small town would be the same as the one in his dream, he couldn't risk letting that come true. "But your majesty, wouldn't it be wiser if you sent somepony who was a little more adequate than I? Certainly you don't think I would be able to handle the assignment on my own."

"Airon, in all of the three years that you have served me, you have remained in the rank of private. You have made the decision to deny any kind of promotion and have kept yourself away from each of the competitions we hold annually. I believe it is about time you earned some recognition."

"You don't understand," Airon spoke quietly. The fear of finding destruction and evil was finally putting some emotion in his voice, but he didn't want to admit that he was afraid. "I get enough recognition in my life just being related to the so-called 'great winged ruler.' Ponies everywhere stare at me shocked because of the hereditary gold hairs in my mane and tail. It's torture to me. I've decided not to get myself any more involved than I have to because I don't want credit for something that was achieved by my great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather!" He didn't mean to raise his voice to the princess, but he was officially fed up with everything that she was practically handing to him on a silver platter.

Princess Celestia was shocked by the sudden outburst of this usually so controlled pegasus. She spoke softly again, "Very well, Airon, if you wish then it shall be a 'top-secret' assignment. Nopony else will ever have to give you any credit for having done it. I just think it's about high time you got away from the castle." It was true. Being a private, he was always the last to get any kind of action from a fight or anything like that. She simply believed that he needed some kind of excitement. "There is a train about to leave the station, if you go now you will get the chance to ride to Ponyville with the nice ponies that gave the evaluation today."

This surprised him. The mare who he poured his secrets to was living in the town that was destined to be destroyed. He found himself compelled to catch that train ASAP! "Thank you princess," he bowed frantically, trying not to show how enthusiastic he was to get to that train. He ran to the doors and the guards had just enough time to get it opened before he zoomed out.

Now he was flying, literally. He didn't even bother getting back to his bunk in the barracks to gather everything he needed for the night. He simply flew over the city straight to the train station. The train was still there, the last few passengers were still boarding.

He had a few seconds to spare for the conductor to verify his armor and allow him entry onto the train. When Twilight saw him she gasped. She realized that this was what the princess's plan was, but she didn't say anything to Airon, for fear that the princess wanted it kept secret.

Once Airon saw the five ponies that were at the evaluation he wondered why he had finally decided to follow the princess's orders and sprint down to the train before it left. He had never been this enthusiastic about anything, but since he was already there, he didn't bother trying to get out of it. When Twilight approached him he straightened up, which was also strange considering she wasn't a commanding officer or any longer in higher rank than him, he didn't need to follow her orders.

"Nice to see you again so soon," Twilight greeted him formally, like they had known each other for years, "did the princess give you an order to ensure us a safe trip home?"

"Not exactly, she asked that I travel back with you to Ponyville to ensure that things are safe. She put it in the way that made it so that I understood my mission," he made sure to add that little part at the end when he saw how confused she looked.

"That's good, I guess," Twilight still wasn't sure what the princess had told him to make him come here, but she was glad that her plan was working, whatever it was.

"Of course it's good!" Applejack forced herself into the conversation, "We could always use visitors to Ponyville, it makes it seem like we're doin' a good job makin' the place feel like an interestin' place to visit!" The joke made Airon's lip curl slightly in a smile, despite the southern drawl in her voice that apparently bothered Airon.

He quickly straightened up. He was worried that he truly was changing. He realized that Twilight was trying to make sure he was still socially happily. In truth, he didn't want to be social with people, he didn't want to get to know people, and he certainly didn't want to laugh at their jokes.

"I'm sorry, we're just trying to be friendly," Twilight tried to start over, "I'm not even sure we've been properly introduced. My name is Twilight Sparkle. I was specially trained by the princess in forms of magic." This fact surprised Airon; She was a personal student of Princess Celestia!

AppleJack jumped back in, "My name's AppleJack, I work with my family at an apple orchard."

Pinkie Pie was next, "I'm Pinkie Pie! I'm friends with everypony I know and I'm really good at parties and giving ponies a good time and making them laugh and keeping them happy in whatever way I can, so if you're ever in a crabby mood, come see me and I'll be sure to put a smile back on your face!" With every word she got a little bit closer to his face, making a different facial expression each time she said something about emotions.

Rainbow Dash pushed Pinkie Pie to the floor, even though she did nothing about it. "I'm Rainbow Dash! The fastest-ACK!" She tried to take off, but forgot she was inside a train car. She hit the ceiling pretty hard and Airon laughed again and before he could catch himself Rarity came up and complimented his grin.

"My my, you've got quite a smile hiding inside you. My name's Rarity and I can always notice the best in ponies," she hesitated, then with a pouty face, "and the worst."

"How interesting," Airon complimented with a grin, "then you can understand that it makes me feel uncomfortable when other ponies try to tell me how horrible I am." Rarity got the point of his remark and decided not to try to "help" him look better.

Twilight spoke up again to get his attention, "That's almost all of us, Fluttershy was supposed to come but she was too busy."

As soon as he heard her name, Airon felt something open inside of him. But he seemingly ignored Twilight's remark and went to sit alone by a window. No pony else spoke to him for the rest of the ride.

/4\

When they got back, Airon automatically began to panic. The first building he saw reminded him terrifyingly of the buildings in his dream. He didn't say anything though.

Twilight walked slowly up next to him, recognized his expression, and sighed. "This is the town you saw isn't it?" She asked

Airon swallowed his fear momentarily. "So far," he whispered, "this building has the same architecture."

"Well, I'm sure nothing bad will happen," Twilight tried to reassure him, "Just try to ignore it and finish your duty to the princess."

The rest of the group filed out of their train car, so Twilight quieted the conversation. "Once you get to know the other ponies here, you'll realize it isn't as dark and cynical as you saw in your dream."

Applejack came up behind Twilight, startling her, "What're y'all talkin' 'bout?" Twilight tried not to look like she was panicking, but she couldn't force back the sweat on her forehead.

Just before she gave up and explained everything, Airon cut in, "Nothing you need to concern yourself with citizen."

Applejack thought on that for less than a second, "Well Twilight's no more citizen than I am." She was very good at picking out lies and getting people to spill if they were hiding something.

Her southern accent wasn't exactly pleasant for Airon to listen to, but he tried to be nice, "Then maybe Twilight doesn't know either," he prided himself a little on his come-back. "Perhaps she was being just as nosey as you, in which case she also knows nothing."

Applejack forcibly hid a startled look. No-pony has ever been able keep a secret from her that easily. She knew something was going on, and she knew Twilight knew. But she would've been fine leaving it alone if they simply explained that it was none of her business.

They all started walking out of the train station, Airon walked far in front. Applejack trotted up along-side Twilight and began her assault. "What are you two hidin'?"

Twilight jumped a little, "Honestly AppleJack, I don't know," she chided, trying to play along with Airon's excuse. AppleJack didn't buy it, but she let it go, for now.

They walked for a while, Airon getting more and more nervous with every building he "inspected."

Suddenly, Spike, a little dragon who sent and received messages from the princess, came running up behind Twilight. Airon didn't notice him yet, that was good for Spike. He came up to Twilight, handing her a scroll discretely.

"Urgent message from the princess, top-secret. In the first one, she told me to make sure you were the only one to read this." He explained very well what his duty was and gave the letter to Twilight under the hoof nearest to him. She waited for a second to make sure no-pony was trying to read it with her.

-Dearest Twilight,

I can understand if you are confused that I sent Airon back on the train with you. He undoubtedly told you his was doing a secret mission for me or something like that, but in truth, I simply wanted him to make friends. And, like you, my star-student, I felt that Ponyville would be the best place to do that. So if you can, try to "distract" him from his duty, and get him to have some fun! Good luck!

When Twilight finished, she put it on the ground and it started to vanish magically. Spike immediately asked; "So what did it say?"

Twilight was about to scold him, but just then he started gagging and coughing. A small billow of smoke and fire burst from the little dragon's mouth and formed another scroll. Twilight caught this one with magic and opened it to read to herself.

-Oh, and one more thing. Our dear friend princess Cadence tells me that there is a very special some-pony who will be just the mare for the job!  
Yours truly, Princess Celestia.

This was a big surprise to Twilight. Princess Cadence was her brother's wife. They knew each other even before that though. Cadence was an expert on the magic of true love, if somepony was here that SHE knew would help Airon, she wasn't wrong. Upon pondering about whom this special pony might be, Airon stopped in front of her. His eyes were wide and his heart beat slowed down. Sweat trickled down his face and he shivered a bit. A few yards down the street in front of him, there was a beautiful mare, with an adorable, bright-yellow coat and luscious, long, flowing pink mane and tail. She glided through the air restlessly on her wondrously soft-looking wings, searching for just the right thing. Airon hoped it would be him.

After Twilight ran into him and he didn't budge an inch, she followed his gaze to see that he was looking at her friend, Fluttershy. "Oh my," she said, thinking that this must have been what Cadence had in mind. Fluttershy 'traveled from stall to stall, asking everypony for a specific brand of seed that wasn't available anywhere in Ponyville. She didn't even look toward Airon before she sprinted in his direction determined to get to another shop before it closed.

Airon, of course, was still mesmerized by the grace that he was witnessing. Fluttershy crashed into him.

"Oh, excuse me sir," Fluttershy apologized as soon as she could. Then when she locked eyes with his, she truly realized her mistake. His blue eyes sparkled like the sky on a clear day. When she fluttered off of him, she noticed more. His strong physique held her haze, his shining armor glinted like sunshine, and his tail danced heavenly with a clash of sky-blue and sunlight-gold.

They stood gazing upon each other for some time. Twilight was wondering how such sudden love could be so possible. Applejack wondered what secret her friend was keeping. Rarity swooned in the romantic love scene. Rainbow Dash was trying not to throw up at the sight, and Pinkie Pie was off chasing a ball that was thrown in a game of fetch for somepony's pet.

Fluttershy blinked out the trance and broke the scene. "Excuse me sir," she spoke quietly but firmly, "but I really must be going before-" as she looked past him, the store she was racing towards had closed up completely just as the last pony walked out with a heavy bag on his back. "Ooooohhh!" She didn't get very loud, but was clearly frustrated.

"Oh, I'm sorry miss, I..." Airon tried to make up for it, but didn't have anything to show his apologies.

"Please, forget about it," Fluttershy huffed just before taking off in a cloud of dust away from the group of ponies.

"Wow," Twilight interrupted Airon's troubled thoughts, "great first impression."

"Pinkie Pie!" He shouted commandingly, and immediately the spunky pony appeared from nowhere. "You told me you know every-pony in this town, correct?"

"Absolutely, I've made good friends with any-"

"Good! I need you to tell me who that was!"

"Oh, that's Fluttershy. She doesn't normally come so close to strangers on their first day in Ponyville. In fact..." she continued blabbering while Airon looked off in the direction that Fluttershy hurried off.

"Fluttershy, I will make this up to you, whatever it was."

"You know," Twilight interrupted again, "I could have told you that, anypony could really. We all know Fluttershy. She looks after little critters in a cottage near the Everfree Forest."

Airon realized how distracted he had become from his mission. He also recognized how upset and uninterested FlutterShy had seemed toward him. "That's interesting. I'll head there later to inspect the building." He tried to think of ways to make it up to her. But he also didn't want her to interfere with his mission. In truth, however, he couldn't wait to see her again.


	2. Chapter 2

/5\

"Yes," Airon nodded assuredly, though not sure what he was looking for, "the bookshelves are well kept, though the books would most definitely fall if the building were surprised moved by an unexpected tremor." The library that Twilight and Spike currently used as their place of residence.

"Yes, it's happened before," Spike sighed, trying not to remember the times he's had to pick up all the books after many things have knocked them down.

"Well it seems otherwise OK," Airon tried to seem presentable, ignoring how distracted he was.

"That's good," Twilight had been thinking about Airon's encounter with FlutterShy and how it obviously tied together with her letter from the princess about a "very special some-pony."

"Very good, I believe I'm ready to see the next place," Airon was obviously not enthusiastic, but obviously trying.

"All right. But wait!" Twilight began stalling, "Spike, I need you to go buy some cupcakes, I'd like to set up a picnic before Airon leaves," she whispered to her loyal but stubborn comrade, she wanted to talk to Airon alone. "Well, I was just wondering..." she trailed off, waiting until Spike had walked out.

"Wondering?" Airon forgot about his lust for a moment, confused by Twilight's puzzling behavior.

Spike disappeared out the front door and Twilight zoomed. "Alright, tell me what happened back there."

"Uumm, excuse me?" Airon backed up a little.

"When Fluttershy crashed into you," she rolled her eyes like it should've been obvious. "I recognized that intense stare you two held for that long, you fell in love with her."

Airon stepped back surprised, had it been that obvious? "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't lie to me! I spend enough time with AppleJack to be able to recognize a liar."

Airon was worrying, but what he'd just heard gave an idea for retaliation, "Hold up, so your friend AppleJack is a professional lie detector?"

Twilight set back a little bit, startled by the sudden topic change, "Well, I wouldn't say professional, but she knows what a lie sounds like."

"So she most likely noticed the lie you told about our conversation at the train station?" Airon knew he'd cornered her now. Then he noticed how she dropped her head, she was incredibly depressed at the realization that she betrayed her friend's trust. "I'm sorry," Airon was genuine with his apology. his time in Ponyville had truly affixed his emotions. "I'm sure AppleJack is very understanding. We can trust to explain things to her."

Twilight lifted her head, gratified. She found that the princess's plan was working. He was changing for the better. Then she took a look outside, it was pitch-black, close to midnight. She hadn't noticed how the time had passed since they returned. "Okay, but we might want to tell her tomorrow." She gestured with her head toward the window, indicating that it was now very late.

"Oh, I suppose so," he followed her gaze and looked downtrodden. Now he had to spend the whole night in Ponyville, without any supplies.

"I suppose you'll need a place to stay for the night," she looked at him intently. He didn't need to say anything. His look of pleading answered her question. "We've got plenty of room in the library." He smiled at her hospitality, something he never received as a soldier.

Spike walked in as Twilight finished preparing the guest bed that she had. "So he'll be staying the night here?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact," Airon answered for Twilight, joking with the dragon with mock intimidation, "Is there a problem with that?" Spike began shaking, thinking Airon was truly upset by the thing he said.

Near the bed Twilight laughed, "Oh Spike, he's only kidding." At that, Airon grinned wildly, grasping the little dragon around his neck with his front right hoof and squishing their faces together.

"Though, I hope I can trust everypony here with my armor. I've been told that some would attempt to steal such finely crafted metals." He truly only half cared, he just wanted to keep conversation while Twilight was busy.

"Oh, I'm sure your armor will be safe for one night. If you need, I could cast a temporary spell of protection for it."

"No, if you think it's safe I trust your opinion." He looked back out the window, thinking more of his encounter with FlutterShy.

Twilight frowned at his lonely face. "Well, Spike and I sleep upstairs. If you need anything just ask."

"Thank you, but I'm sure I'll be fine for the night." At that Twilight and Spike started finding their way to their rooms. Once Airon believed that they were completely out, he began removing his armor. He was just finishing up when Twilight quickly decided to take one last check on her guest. When she peeked down, she recognized that he indeed had no cutie mark on either flank. She closed her mouth and sneaked back upstairs, she didn't want to bring anything else on him after his rough day.

/6\

Meanwhile, at FlutterShy's cottage, Rarity was continuing on with banter about how well all the handsome soldiers did in the evaluation. FlutterShy tried to seem like she was interested, but was truly distracted by her thoughts.

Rarity finished her sentence with; "but he was just too scrawny."

"Hmm." Fluttershy forgot Rarity was talking.

"You're thinking about that one pegasus, aren't you," Rarity easily recognized the look on Fluttershy's face, "That one you crashed into?"

Fluttershy pretended to look offended, "Of course not," She walked around, fooling herself that she was still busy with the mother birds. The males had all come back while she was out shopping and since the girls were already fed and comfortable so there were now piles of living bugs and worms in the nests and on the floor. "Just, a little dazed by it."

"Right, after all afternoon and you're still having trouble seeing straight. I've seen you crash harder and still work fine." She grew a smug look on her face, now knowing there was no escape for Fluttershy.

Fluttershy simply grew angry, remembering her spite for men, "NO! I promised myself I would never fall so easily for a colt!"

"Indeed? Well by the looks of it, you fell for a stallion!"

FlutterShy sighed, knowing Rarity wouldn't quit until she knew she was right. However she had one more chance. "Males have always betrayed me, for as long as I can remember." She tortured herself, trying to remember her horrifying past. "My father was never there for me, all through flight school the colts always made fun, and these male birds left us struggling this morning."

"Now hold on, you surely aren't still stuck on the idea that every colt you come in contact with will betray you!" Rarity was typically very persuasive, but FlutterShy wasn't giving up that easily.

"Of course I am! Did you see how he made me miss my chance at buying the last bag of sunflower seeds from that shop?"

"Well you can't only blame him." FlutterShy was glaring intently at Rarity. Rarity tried not to make eye contact, knowing how powerful FlutterShy's stares could be. "Well, I also saw how deeply you two looked into each other's eyes. Each of you staring hard into the other's soul, finding their passion and falling in love. It's so ROMANTIC!" Rarity fell off her seat on the sofa with the drama of her description of her friend's encounter.

FlutterShy didn't want to admit it, but she did think it was romantic. And she couldn't wait until her next encounter with the brilliant Pegasus she ran into at the marketplace.


End file.
